Ice Weasels WIN Spring 2003 Season!

The season came down to the wire. Going into the final game of the season, the outcome was uncertain. If the Weasels won that game, they would finish first place. If they lost by a single run, they would finish second place. Otherwise, they would finish third. The Weasels played hard and well, and won their final game 14-6.

The last time the Ice Weasels finished first place in a season was back in Spring 2001, when Amy was still astounding us with her pitching, fielding, hitting, and spirited playing, Nathan was still roaming the outfield and crushing the ball at the plate, Cory was a full-time Ice Weasel giving an impressive performance in all his games, and even Aimee was still playing for the Weasels.

The Weasels have changed a lot in that time, but some things have remained the same. The following people played in at least 3 games of both seasons: Brandy, Carrie, Matt, Mitch, Neil, and Newton.

In the Spring 2003 season the Weasels welcomed John, Laurie, Chris, and Andrea to the team. They all played important roles in the Weasels' success this season, and John and Laurie will be playing for the Weasels again next season.

A huge contribution was made by a few Weasels who joined after the Spring 2001 season, and are now enjoying their first Ice Weasels championship. Eric has been with the team since Summer I 2002, Azzy has been a Weasel off-and-on since Summer I 2001, Julienne has been playing games for the Weasels since Summer I 2002, and Megan (who was unfortunately injured for most of this season) has played for the Weasels since Summer II 2002.

Way to go, Ice Weasels! Congratulations on an excellent season!

Post-Season Tournament

Finishing in first place qualified the Weasels for the post-season tournament. Unlike in past years, most of the Weasels' regular players were able to make it to the tournament. The Weasels' tournament roster was Carrie (RF), Chris (RCF, LF, DH), Christine (C), Eric (P), John (1B, SS, 3B, DH), Julienne (3B, SS), Laurie (2B, DH), Matt (1B, SS, 3B, LF, RCF, DH), Mitch (LF, 1B), Neil (SS, 3B, P, DH), Newton (LF, DH), Nyssa (LCF) and Susan (2B, DH). Also in attendance were some fans, and Weasels' staff member Rob, who took many excellent photographs.

Game 1, May 10 2003, 9am, Krieg 10, The Spoilers @ Ice Weasels (Loss, 14-9)

Notes: This team hit the ball well, and had some nice fielding. It's hard to point to what exactly caused the Weasels' loss. Eric's pitching was good, as usual. A few balls got past the outfielders, which hurt the Weasels. When the outfielders backed up to compensate, some of their hitters dropped the hits into the shallow outfield. A short fielder configuration may have been called for, and this will be kept in mind for future tournaments. The Weasels did display some aggressive baserunning, including one play at the plate (after Mitch waved Julienne home) in which Julienne dislodged the ball from the catcher's glove, and thus was safe. There were a few bad calls against the Weasels by the umpire, but they weren't the reason the Weasels lost.

Game 2, May 10 2003, 11am, Krieg 6, Ice Weasels @ Naked Chickens (Win, 10-9)

See pics from the game
Notes: The Naked Chickens are the team managed by former Ice Weasel Tammy. Past Weasel players Maria and Ray are also on the team. Eric played with them during the regular season, but elected to play for the Weasels in the tournament. Anyway, because of how well the teams knew each other, it was a fun game, but both sides really wanted to win (since both were facing elimination). The game was close throughout, and ended very dramatically with the Weasels having to protect a 1 run lead in the bottom half of the final inning. Continuing the Ice Weasel tradition of having one injury per tounament, Neil got hurt in a play at third base. Eric tossed the ball to him just as the runner slid into the bag. Neil applied the tag in time (and got the out), but the runner had crashed into his leg. Neil didn't field for the rest of the game, but remained in the batting lineup. A regimen of beer and aspirin allowed him to continue playing in the tournament, although the next day he could hardly walk.

Game 3, May 10 2003, 3pm, Krieg 6, (Beer Bats or Bash Crew, not sure which) @ Ice Weasels (Win, 17-7)

See pics from the game
Notes: This game featured a LOT of aggressive baserunning by the Ice Weasels. The Weasels took advantage of virtually every fielding and throwing error made by the opponents, forcing them to try and make tough plays, which as often as not resulted in even more extra bases. Chris and Julienne both got in-the-park homeruns that probably would have been no more than singles or doubles, but for their aggressiveness.

Game 4, May 10 2003, 6pm, Krieg 6, Late Bloomers @ Ice Weasels (Loss, 16-1)

See pics from the game
Notes: Eric and Newton were not able to play in this game due to other things they had to do (Eric had an exam and Newton had tickets to see Cirque du Soleil). Neil came up big for the Weasels and pitched a good game. Unfortunately, the opposing team could hit and field very well. Unlike the previous two games, where the Weasels had scored a lot of runs by capitalizing on their opponents' errors, simple aggressiveness on the basepaths wasn't enough in this game. They didn't make enough errors for the Weasels to capitalize on, and for the most part they had excellent throwing arms. The game ended due to the Weasels being 15-run-ruled.

Summary

Their performance in the tournament was good enough to get the Weasels 4th place (of 8 teams), and a trophy. The original plan for the trophy was to vote for a tournament MVP and award them the trophy, but the team insisted that Mitch take the trophy home in recognition of the work he has put into the Ice Weasels over the years.

This is the best tournament performance by the Weasels to date, and it was truly a team effort. There were offensive and defensive contributions from all parts of the lineup, and everyone played with a lot of hustle and desire to win, even as the day progressed and fatigue set in. Not enough can be said about how hard everyone played -- it was obvious that the Weasels wanted to win.

The Weasels need to bring this momentum into the coming season, so they can play in the next tournament, and try to improve upon their record. Thanks a lot to everyone who came out to the tournament -- it was a long day, but hopefully everyone had a good time and is looking forward to doing it again soon. Way to go, Weasels!

Spring 2003 MVP

The season MVP trophy was awarded at the tournament. View the results of the season MVP voting.

Spring 2003 Game Info

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• Flamingoes
• Nihalators
• Ice Weasels
• Stingers
• Hidden Talent

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Season Details